Watching this film again over the weekend—and despite its lead’s zany, comic excessiveness—I was struck with how astute a divorce drama “Mrs. Doubtfire†is on top of its humor. It’s not surprising the comedy is mixed with emotion (it’s directed by Chris Columbus, who did “Beethoven†and “Home Aloneâ€). Yet what is surprising is despite being raunchy, “Mrs. Doubtfire†is also poignant. It bookends its proceedings with divorce drama that feels painful rather than comedic. It’s a film, like “Kindergarten Cop,†that you saw as a kid, watch again as an adult, and realize the film might not really be for kids. Yet considering “Mrs. Doutbfire’s strengths—and its flagrant ending homage to Mr. Rogers Neighborhood—its ultimate takeaway is a film full of empathy instead of vitriol, full of ’90s nostalgia.
The film’s plot is so zany it defies reason—but then again, this was the decade that released Stallone’s “Stop or My Mom Will Shoot.†Here, Robin Williams plays Daniel Hillard, an actor who quits his job for moral concerns, throws a party he shouldn’t for his son, and finds his wife, Miranda (Sally Field) has had enough. The way Columbus starts the scene: a mobile petting zoo brought to Hillard’s San Francisco home, animals destroying his house, and kids dancing on tables to House of Pain’s “Jump Around,†you’d think he’s setting up a hijinks-driven film. Yet the ensuing argument between Daniel and Miranda—which leads to their separation—is real. There’s a a seriousness to the film’s tone when she says she wants a divorce. The stillness continues as the camera pans to their three children (Matthew Lawrence, Lisa Jakub, and Mara Wilson) watching from the stairs above.
Under the Comedy: The Seriousness of Divorce
It’s also this realness that saves “Mrs. Doubtfire†as it swan-dives into the land of the absurd. In an effort to be with his children daily after the divorce judge only grants him Saturday supervision, Hillard entrusts his gay brother (Harvey Fierstein) and his partner to “make me a woman.†The result is humorous scene on top of humorous scene as they transform Hillard into a semi-believable old woman he then passes off as a nanny for hire.
Much of the film that follows involves using ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ for laughs at Daniels’ expense, Williams ad libbing his unique brand of comedy, and a bevy of jokes most movies wouldn’t dare today. You could imagine “Mrs. Doubtfire†turning unforgiving in the hands of a lesser actor. But Williams adds a charm to the role that would have failed with literally anyone else. Critic Roger Ebert was correct when he said Williams “would have had to be carried away kicking and screaming from the project.â€
However, “Mrs. Doubtfire” works as it does due to two factors: a) Williams is devoted to the performance — not of playing Mrs. Doubtfire but of being Hillard trapped within the ruse and b) his kids really love him. All three beg him not to leave in the film’s open sequences as he packs his station wagon, and later repeatedly ask their mom why dad can’t watch them after school instead of Mrs. Doubtfire. In fairness, this part of the script I questioned, as, despite not having current employment or an apartment at the time of the judge’s decision, an only Saturday visitation schedule seems a bit harsh for the custody arrangement. But it must be to set up the film’s premise. As Mrs. Doubtfire, Daniel becomes supermom. He cooks, cleans, learns recipes, and is strict and formal.
Comedy, Albeit a Bit Dated
I had the thought watching the film that had Hillard been like this, maybe his marriage wouldn’t have ended. Yet “Mrs. Doubtfire†is smart by not showing us the complete build-up to the couple’s divorce and by not making it one-sided. Miranda resents him for being too loosey-goosey and devoid of responsibility; he resents her for her busy, corporate job (she’s an architect) and lack or availability. Both probably stopped being right for each other a long time ago.
But the film’s treatment of divorce—between its calamity—is dour. We’re privy to a multitude of scenes where Daniel—as Mrs. Doubtfire—must learn what his wife thought of him as she confides in Mrs. Doubtfire about her marital strife. Here, Field has less to work with, but the film draws her out more than many modern comedies. She’s serious but still cares. She’s a good mom. But this is Williams’ film, and the script by Randi Mayem Singer and Leslie Dixon (based off the novel by Anne Fine) treats her character a little colder than it could have.
Aside the comedy Mrs. Doubtfire herself brings, much of the rest of the film devotes itself to Hillard—via his alter ego—watching his wife’s new love interest, Stu (a subdued Pierce Brosnan) replace him. Brosnan had not yet become Bond here and is limited. He still makes the most of his scenes, especially as Hillard constantly tries to push him away from the family throughout. This comes to a head as Hillard must be Mrs. Doubtfire at his wife’s birthday (with Stu and the children) and simultaneously be Daniel Hillard to meet with the owner of the TV station he works (Robert Prosky) to interview for a job promotion. The situation ends like you’d expect, with hijinks, pratfalls, laugh-out-loud comedy, and finally, serious repercussion—all within 20 minutes. “Mrs. Doubtfire†then jettisons into its final act, which, again, is somber and more serious than its previous scenes would suggest.Â
A Smarter Divorce Study than Given Credit For
“Mrs. Doubtfire†was released in 1993 and most people know how it ends. It starts looney, becomes sad, blasts off into side-splitting comedy for the next hour and a half, and then, somehow, in its closing frames, becomes as poignant a divorce study as “Marriage Story†or others of its ilk. Williams and Field close the film with empathy but realism. This isn’t one of those films where everything works out and Miranda realizes she was wrong about Daniel. She realizes, though, that she and the kids were better off with Mrs. Doubtfire… and it’s not hard to see where this is going. The film ends the way it should. And while it’s imperfect, often too zany, and includes comedy that doesn’t date well, it roots itself with firm empathy for its characters.
It took Daniel Hillard quitting a job and a house-ruining party to end his marriage. Mrs. Doubtfire saves it. The film’s greatest achievement—aside its comedy—is that Columbus, Williams, and Field lay down the gauntlet that family is worth saving. And, by caring about how divorce affects children as well as adults, it’s one of the most serious takes on the subject I’ve seen. And that’s saying something when 9/10ths of the film is little but Williams ripping us in stitches.
